Summer 2009 Advantage

ADVANTAGEARKANSAS PUBLIC SCHOOL RESOURCE CENTER

SUMMER 2009

Arkansas Public School Resource Center

Victory Building1401 West Capitol, Suite 435

Little Rock, AR 72201Telephone: 501-492-4300

Fax: 501-492-4305

www.apsrc.net

Scott SmithExecutive [email protected]

Bobbie DavisFinance Services Director

[email protected]

Harry Dickens Technology [email protected]

Patsy HammondFinancial Analyst

[email protected]

Beth McCullough Communications Director

[email protected]

Gary ParishFinancial [email protected]

Kay TeperaTechnology Specialist

[email protected]

Lisa WaltersOffice Manager

[email protected]

CONTENTS

2| Summer 2009 | ADVANTAGE

COVER STORY4 NWEA Testing

Find out how the partnership between NWEA and APSRC can benefit your school and improve test scores.

6 DonorsChoose.orgAPSRC has partnered with DonorsChoose.org to provide your school with $100,000 in grant money for the classroom. Find out how easy it is for your teachers, librarians, coaches, etc. to get the supplies they need.

ADVANTAGE| Summer 2009 | 3

NEWSNational Teacher Appreciation Day

Each May, schools across the country

celebrate National Teacher Appreciation

Day to celebrate the hard work and efforts

of our nation’s teachers.

This year’s celebration was held May 5,

2009, and Hector School District honored

their teachers by providing massages and

make overs.

Welcome wagon

APSRC hired two new staff

members this summer to

better serve you, our members. Join

us in welcoming Kay Tepera as the

new technology specialist and Gary

Parish as the new financial specialist.


DREAM ONwith NWEA & APSRC

The Arkansas Public School Resource Center is teaming up with the Northwest

Evaluation Association to give educators the data and resources they need to place

the child at the center of the educational experience. APSRC members are now

eligible for reduced rates through NWEA – and organization that has been putting

kids first since 1977.

What is NWEA?Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA) is a national not-for-profit educational

services organization that provides research-based educational growth measures,

professional training, and consulting services to improve teaching and learning.

Partnering with school districts, states, and other education organizations, NWEA

delivers computerized assessment services to more than 3,400 education agencies

and approximately 4 million students. Additionally, its Growth Research Database,

the most extensive collection of student growth data in the country, provides a rich

source for the study of academic achievement.

Reports are available at individual, classroom, school, program and district levels

so all stakeholders can participate in the resulting discussions. Students see their

scores immediately and teachers see detailed reports within 24 hours. Within 72

hours, principals and other administrators can access reports of aggregated data that

show student growth, proficiency and norms.

To learn more about the partnership with NWEA and what it can do for you school,

contact Harry Dickens at [email protected] or 501-492-4300.

ADVANTAGE|Summer 2009 | 5

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WIRED! is Arkansas source for technology for education! With over 18 years of serving Arkansas’ schools, WIRED! has the experience and the available resources to meet your budget and timeline.


Getting the most for your classroom


APSRC is partnering with DonorsChoose.org - an online charity that connects individual “citizen philanthropists” with classrooms in need - to provide $100,000 in funding for rural and charter schools through a grant

from the Walton Family Foundation.

What does this mean for your school?

MONEY!

Getting the most for your classroom

. . .


What is DonorsChoose.org?

DonorsChoose.org is a non-profit website

where public school teachers describe

specific educational projects for their

classrooms and individuals can choose

which projects to fund.

How does it work?

At DonorsChoose.org, teachers submit

ideas for resources that their students need

in order to learn. Then, individuals search

proposals, learn about classroom needs,

and choose which projects to fund.

Teachers shop for specific materials online

using our vendors, and once a project is

funded, DonorsChoose.org ships

the materials directly to the

teacher’s classroom.

Who can submit proposals?

DonorsChoose.org invites front-line

educators at public schools to submit

proposals, including teachers, librarians,

guidance counselors, school nurses and

coaches. These educators must work

directly with students and teach full-time.

What can educators ask for?

Educators can ask for any materials that

directly benefit students (art supplies,

books, technology, sports equipment,

musical instruments, etc.). Proposals

cannot indirectly benefit students

(e.g. professional development) or

discriminate.

How much does the average DonorsChoose.org proposal cost?

The average proposal costs $400. Most

proposals under $400 are funded within 3

months.

What is DonorsChoose.org?DonorsChoose.org is an online charity connecting individuals to classrooms in need.

What is DonorsChoose.org?DonorsChoose.org is an online charity connecting individuals to classrooms in need.

What are the chances of getting funded?

Proposals stay on the website for 5 months. About 65% of projects

are fully funded.

How many proposals can a teacher submit?

DonorsChoose.org works based on a points system: first-time

users begin with 3 points, which allows them to submit up to 3

proposals at one time. As teachers earn points, they can submit more

proposals, as well as different types of proposals.

Does it work?

Absolutely! Since 2000, DonorsChoose.org

has delivered more than $22 million in

resources to more than one million students

across the country.

Questions?

Go to www.donorschoose.org/teachers, or

contact Associate Director Kirk Smiley at

[email protected].


Ready to be the next success story? APSRC is proud to partner with DonorsChoose.org – an online charity

that connects individual “citizen philanthropists” with classrooms

in need – to provide $100,000 in funding for rural and charter

schools across the state through a grant from the Walton Family

Foundation.

Teachers, librarians, nurses, social workers, guidance counselors –

any front-line student worker who is employed by the school – can submit

a project to the DonorsChoose.org Web site to request money for classroom projects that

exceed their limited budgets. Educators can ask for anything from books visual learning

tools to science and technology equipment.

Each qualifying classroom project at an APSRC member school will automatically be

half-funded through a Double Your Impact grant while donors from across the country

will complete the other half of the funding to make the classroom idea a reality.

APSRC will fund half of the request, and donors can log on to DonorsChoose.org to fund

the remaining 50 percent. All you have to do it log on to DonorsChoose.org, click the

“Teachers Go Here!” link and get started!

Please encourage your teachers to take advantage of this exciting APSRC member

benefit. Visit the DonorsChoose section of the APSRC Web site (www.apsrc.net/member-

resources/donors-choose) to find information and materials to provide to your teachers

and other front-line student workers.

It’s easy!


Ready to be the next success story?“We are excited by the number of Arkansas

students who will benefit from this partnership. Thanks to the Arkansas Public School Resource Center and the generosity of the Walton Family Foundation, more Arkansas teachers will have

the resources they need in the classroom, and thousands of students will have improved

learning opportunities.”-- Charles Best,

Founder and CEO of DonorsChoose.org.


Your classroom could be next!More than 90,000 projects have been brought to life ...

Submit a ProjectIt’s simple to register – tell

DonorsChoose.org where you teach

and confirm you can receive e-mails.

Upload a photo that provides a window

into your classroom. Now, you’re ready

to submit a project!

The DonorsChoose.org system allows

you to find what you need online, and

you choose the exact materials you

need for your classroom.

Next, you’ll aim to inspire donors by

describing what you need, why you

need it, and how your project will

change your students’ lives for the

better.

Donors ChooseWord to the wise: projects under $400

have the best chance of being funded.

Check back often – a donor may leave

a personal message for you and your

classroom letting you know why he or

she chose to give to your project.

Send thanksWhen your project is funded,

DonorsChoose.org ships the materials

straight to your school.

In return, you and your students

will write thank-you letters and take

photographs of the project in action to

share your thanks with your donors,

who love to see the impact of their

gifts!

How It Works


Your classroom could be next!More than 90,000 projects have been brought to life ...


Why DonorsChoose.org?DonorsChoose.org grew out of a Bronx high school where teachers

experienced first-hand the scarcity of learning materials in our public schools.

Charles Best, then a social studies teacher, sensed that many people

would like to help distressed public schools, but were frustrated by a lack

of influence over their donations. He created DonorsChoose.org so that

individuals could connect directly with classrooms in need.

Since launching in 2000, DonorsChoose.org has empowered more than

200,000 teachers and citizen philanthropists to become change makers.

DonorsChoose.org envisions a nation where students in every community

have the resources they need to learn.

citizen philanthropists had the satisfaction of making a tangible difference

75,000+ classroom projects have brought learning alive for students, primarily in high poverty neighborhoods

2,000,000+ students received books, technology, supplies, field trips, class visitors and other resources

115,000+

Documents

Summer 2009 Advantage